


Evolve

by Chowy



Category: Invader Zim
Genre: Angst, Body Horror, Emotional/Psychological Abuse, Gore, Graphic Description, Horror, Hurt/Comfort, Manipulation, Multi, Pakking, Self-Mutilation, not zadr zadr but it is heavily implied dib and zim have emotions, will update tags as I think of more
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-07-29
Updated: 2020-11-22
Packaged: 2021-03-06 01:00:16
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,105
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25594666
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Chowy/pseuds/Chowy
Summary: “Zib…?” He asked softly.“Are you sleeping well Dib? I’ll give you another dosage in a moment, just relax, you’ll be asleep soon.”“Zib…?! It is you! But I thought Zim erased all alternative timelines!” Dib was fully awake now, and he began to struggle against the restraints. He recognized the shape and the build of the ship, this was an Irken carrier ship. Zib must have stolen it.“Please do not tire yourself out Dib. It’s much easier if you simply relax and cooperate, but the more you struggle the harder the entire procedure will be. I’m sure you have questions, and I will answer them, but for now you need to relax. I don’t want this to be painful for you.” Zib said. The screen he was pressing on vanished, Dib could see the outline of Zib’s PAK on his head, with a cable running down under his jacket.
Relationships: Dib & Zim (Invader Zim), Dib/Zim (Invader Zim), kinda-?
Comments: 11
Kudos: 74





	1. A Dark Stormy Night (Prologue)

_ “ i’m invested in you, in your story.” _ _  
  
_

_ “ tell it to me from the beginning, don’t spare the details.” _ _  
_ _  
_ _ “ tell me about the monster.” _ _  
  
_

_ ~~~ _

These things usually started on dark stormy nights, wasn’t that how most horror stories started? Dark stormy nights, with no stars or moons to guide you to safety, the paths that had been taken many times becoming unfamiliar and unbeaten, the uncertainty of Mother Nature and her mercy, if she would be kind and let you get through this hellish night, or if you’d end up in the local paper, listed in the obituaries. 

He was no stranger to the darkness or the night, in fact most of his kid-life he had spent time hiding there, staying up late into the young hours of the morning to simply sit and watch and wait in front of his computer monitor (even in now, in his college days, he found himself doing the same thing). Yes the night was an old friend to him, and with that old friend came the inclusion of the dark. He had never been afraid of the dark or storms, they even helped him sleep at night.

But this storm was a brutal one, the winds whipped around like snakes fighting each other, thrashing and snapping at violently. He had been on his way to a friend’s house when the wind had picked up, pulling his hood over his head to block the oncoming rain.

But the wind was starting to grow violent, when he looked up he saw nothing in the sky, nott even the darkness of the storm clouds. There were no stars or moon, nothing but the faint outlines of leaves and sticks flying through the air.

He pressed further, noticing he was on the correct street. But after a few more footsteps, there came a loud SNAP, and the lights on the street were off. Now he was alone in the dark, it was no longer a friendly comfort to him, but a deadly trap.

He continued out of memory, trying to remember where he was on the side-walk.

“Zim!” he called. He had been on his way over to the Irken’s home when the storm had started, he had received multiple calls and messages from him in an urgent manner. Something important and that needed in person discussion.

“Zim!” he called again, fighting the shrieking wind and raging rain. The wind was only growing louder, swelling and boiling like water in a kettle. It got so loud that Dib swore it sounded like he was standing right next to a jet engine. He placed his hands over his ears as he screamed again: “Zim!”   
  
But there was no answer, no reply. 

There was sizzling and popping somewhere off in the distance, probably from the tree limb that had hit the powerlines. The smell of burning sap greeted his nostrils. The wind became all too much, and the rain pelting against his face blinded him. He was lost, walking for what seemed to be forever. But he remembered the house being so close…

The wind turned to a high pitch ping, a shrill sound that made him feel weightless.

The last thing he could remember was his vision going white, and the smell of burning tree sap.

~~~   
  
His eyes were met with the hum of machines. He squinted, still light-headed, unsure of where he was and unable to see.

He tried to move, but his body was restrained.   
  
“Oh, you’re awake.”

Dib turned his head, trying to blink rapidly and wake-up. He didn’t recognize where he was, he wasn’t if he was home or if he was dead.

  
He squinted. Was that…?   
  
No…

Zib had been left in that other dimension. How was he HERE?!

And...how was he alive?   
  
“Zib…?” He asked softly.

“Are you sleeping well Dib? I’ll give you another dosage in a moment, just relax, you’ll be asleep soon.”   
  
“Zib…?! It is you! But I thought Zim erased all alternative timelines!” Dib was fully awake now, and he began to struggle against the restraints. He recognized the shape and the build of the ship, this was an Irken carrier ship. Zib must have stolen it.   
  
“Please do not tire yourself out Dib. It’s much easier if you simply relax and cooperate, but the more you struggle the harder the entire procedure will be. I’m sure you have questions, and I will answer them, but for now you need to relax. I don’t want this to be painful for you.” Zib said. The screen he was pressing on vanished, Dib could see the outline of Zib’s PAK on his head, with a cable running down under his jacket.

  
“What are you talking about?! What operation?!” Dib tried to pull himself free again. “I-I don’t understand…” he fell limp under the tight restraints. “I didn’t want to leave you in that place! Zim did! He almost killed you, not me! Why do you want ME?”

“Oh Dib-” Zib said, as if he were a teacher correcting a student. He pulled something from within his coat, Dib saw an extra arm hand it off to himself, and then retract back into Zib. “This isn't out of hate or useless revenge. This is out of what I see in you. I know what you can be, what WE can be, if you just let go of being restrained as a Dib and become whole. It isn’t so bad-” Zib was drawing closer, Dib squinted at what he was holding. “-it’s peaceful, and once you understand the beauty of what you become, it becomes your way of life. We could accomplish anything, you just have to relax, and let fate happen.”   
  
Dib saw the gleam of another PAK in Zib’s hands.   
  
“Zim…”   
  
He began to sob, though no tears fell. Harsh breaths wracked his body.   
  
“Zim...no-”   
  
Zib grabbed the frame of a IV bag hooked into Dib. His eyes were soft and gentle, there was no anger or hate in them like Dib expected.   
“It’s okay Dib, you’ll be together soon, and then you’ll never be apart again-” Dib watched his hand go up and make adjustments to the valves on the machine next to him. The fluid in the IV bag turned a bright blue. “Now just close your eyes, and go to sleep.”   
  
“No, no please-”   
  
“Shh…”   
  
His vision grew blurry, and he fell back.

  
  


-

  
  


-

  
  


-

  
  


_ Zim...  _

-

  
  


-

  
  


-

_ No… _

-

  
  


-

  
  


-

_ I’m sorry. _


	2. Chapter 1: You're Gonna Be Fine

In the darkness he saw a small circle of light. It was like an eclipse, basking him from head to toe with dark and light, a burning halo in the sky. 

A small voice whispered in his ear.   
  
_ “Time to wake up now.” _ _  
_ _  
_ He was floating, and then the eclipse grew into a ring of fire, swallowing him whole.   
  
.

.

.

.

Dib jolted upwards as if electricity shot through his veins. He sat upwards, gagging at the tugs of tubes hanging out of his body. The sound of a steady beeping helped him focus, he slowly moved his hands towards his face and rubbed.    
  
_ My glasses.  _ He thought, realizing his unfocused vision wasn’t from his own head.  _ Where are my glasses? _ _  
_ _  
_ He reached around, feeling the linen of the bed he was on, the sidebar of the hospital bed, but no nightstand beside him.

“Dad…?” His voice was meek and fragile, like thin ice over a lake in the spring. He wanted to move, but-

-all these tubes.

He felt over his arms, feeling two tubes on the right and three on the left. He wondered how bad of a fall he must have taken in that storm, or what had happened that had knocked him out so badly and rendered him to need all these tubes.   
  
He could recall a few bits and pieces of that strange dream about Zib, he’d have to tell Zim about it later. 

“Dad?” He called again. Was he in his dad’s hospital? His dad usually did surgeries and they like on him, they had an infirmary in the lower level of their house. Why would he be in a public hospital?   
  
Unless maybe Zim brought him there, yeah, he did go down outside of Zim’s house. But then again, Zim would always bring him home if he were seriously hurt or injured.

  
“Gaz!” He called louder, almost yelling. “Dad? Dad!”   
  
He tried getting up again, but before he even attempted it he knew he would fall by walking. 

“Somebody?! Hello?! Zim!”   
  
He stopped when a splitting pain shot through his forehead, it almost felt like a horrible migraine. But it was a strange, different pain, it sank through his head and rippled down his body like a stone being dropped into a lake.    
  
“Dib? Dib! Settle down!” That voice…   
  
In the blurriness he could recognize the green skin and two long hair antennas that curled in the back.   
  
Hands pushed his shoulders back against the raised bed. “I’m glad you’re both up, but you can’t be getting excited like that and making your blood pressure go up. Your body is still getting used to that extra circulation.”   
  
“What…? No, no-” he tried to push himself away from him, pushing his back further and further against the bed. “Don’t touch me, don’t touch me-” he pulled away from Zib’s touch, his breathing became shallow and short as he realized he wasn’t in his home or in a hospital or maybe even on Earth…

He was in a spaceship.

  
“W-where’s my dad?! Where’s my sister? Where’s-” He stopped. “Y-you didn’t…” He swallowed harshly, feeling a hard lump in his throat. He slowly reached back, a harsh cry leaving him as his hands met metal. “No…no…” He began to cry, the tears so hot and horrible they felt like a fever.   
  
“Shh, shh,” Zib soothed, leaning over him like a nurse and adjusting the blankets back into place. “I know you’re overwhelmed right now Dib, but you both need to get rest. It’s good I’m here so you can have a better recovery than me. We’ll need to dress the convergence point but I imagine you’ll want to eat first.” He went over to a spot besides the bed. “But your vitals are looking great! Your heart rate is probably from your sudden waking, so don’t worry about that.”   
  
“Zib...where am I?” Dib asked quietly. “Why did you do this…?” There were still tears running down his eyes. Zib slowly moved his hand down and rubbed a thumb under Dib’s eye. “Don’t cry Dib, you need your fluids.”   
  


Dib pulled his head away from Zib’s hand. Zib’s hand lingered, and then he drew away. “I’ll tell you once you’re back on your feet,” he said, a bit less kindness in his voice. “Never mind that though,” the sincerity of his tone returned. “You’re both okay though, that’s the most important thing.”   
  
“Zim is DEAD,” Dib hissed at him. “You KILLED him.”   
  
“No, I didn’t. You don’t get it yet,” Zib huffed. “Stop getting mad, I told you, I’ll tell you everything once you’re better.”    
  
“...can I please just have my glasses back?” Dib asked, squinting at him. “I want to at least be able to see.”   
  
“Oh yes!” Zib said, going into his jacket. “I cleaned them for you, had a lot of grime on them.”   
  
“Yeah,” Dib outstretched his hands, feeling the thick frames in his hands. He slowly opened them and slid them on his face, squinting and blinking and looking around.

If Zib weren’t there, Dib would have thought of it as any other hospital. He saw Zib more clearly now, standing at a monitor and typing away at a keyboard. Sensing Dib’s eyes on him, Zib looked over and gave a reassuring smile.   
  
“You’re going to be okay Dib. Both of you are. I’m going to help you through it, and everything will be smooth and a little less painful.” He turned to Dib. “I’ll be back in a bit with some food.”

Dib didn’t say anything, he only stared at Zib with watery pink eyes. 

“Don’t look so glum Dib, you and Zim are gonna be just fine.”   
  


Zib turned and he left, the door sealing shut behind him. Dib tossed his head back, hands resting on the dome of metal now securely attached to his head, the reality of the situation setting in as he spoke quietly to himself.   
  
“Zim…?”   
  
There was no reply, only the quiet emptiness of his own mind.   
  
“Zim…”   
  


He cracked, letting out wet wails as his face fell into his hands. He heaved harshly, his hands wrapping around his stomach as he hunched over, gritting his teeth tightly. He continued to cry, struggling to collect himself.   
  
Zim was dead, he was gone. His alien was gone and his remains were fused to his head.

It was sick, it was a sick twisted joke that wasn’t funny.

When his body grew tired from crying, he rested his head back and to the side, his hands still set on the PAK fused to the back of his head.   
  
“Zim, I’m sorry, I’m so sorry…” 

He dozed into a half-asleep state, hands not leaving the small dome, only waking up when he heard the door open. He moved his head up, looking over the foot of the bed at Zib. He was holding a small tray.   
  
“Dib?” He asked. He went to his bedside and tapped a button, a small shelf slide over to serve as a table. Zib sat the tray down on it, Dib glanced down at what was on it.

A small bowl of broth, a cup of translucent purple liquid, and a small brown tablet 

“Oh, you are awake. Good.” Zib smiled again. “I brought you dinner.”   
  
Dib stared down at the bowl. “I’m not eating that.”   
  
“Don’t be ridiculous Dib,” Zib huffed. “You and Zim need to eat.”   
  
“You could have put anything in there,” He pushed the swivel table away.

  
“Dib-” Zib let out a long sigh, then picked up the bowl and took a small sip. “See? Not poisonous.”   
  
Dib was unconvinced. “And the drink? The tablet?”   
  
“The tablet is chocolate,” Zib rolled his eyes and took a small sip of the drink. “Now, eat. You need it.”    
  
Dib swallowed again, and slowly his hands clasped the bowl and brought it close again. He took a small sip, the hunger in his stomach snarling like a wolf. He began to eat more quickly, feeling the warm salty broth run down his throat. 

The drink tasted like iced tea, but more fruity. He drank the whole thing and then ate the tablet, letting the chocolate melt in his mouth.   
  
Well, even if it killed him, it wasn’t bad for a last meal.    
  
“Well, I’m gonna re-clean the convergence spot,” Zib said, motioning him to sit forwards. He went to the cabinets and pulled down a few bottles and a rag. “You just relax.” He opened one bottle of liquid and gave it a quick pass on a rag, bringing it over to Dib and rubbing it along the seam of the PAK and his skin.

Dib hissed, gripping the sheets at the sting.   
  
“Oh stop,” Zib cooed. “The fusion looks great, clean and healing nicely.” He felt Zib’s finger run along a small section of the back of his head. “And there some veins forming! This was a great surgery Dib.”    
  
Zib went back, exchanging the bottles. Dib stared at the PAK on the back of Zib’s head, studying the new upgrades he had made to it. Dib remembered long ago when Zib was still a child, and the bulging veins that formed from the PAK.

But Zib had changed, his hair had started growing back around the PAK, there were new securings around it to keep it in place. Dib realized that at the bottom there was a new cable attached, trailing down under his coat, 

Zib turned back around, coming back over with the new bottle and squeezing a cream onto his hands, rubbing it along the seam. Once he was finished, he patted Dib’s shoulder. “All done.”   
  
Dib laid back, feeling pathetic at how reliant he was currently on Zib. He wanted to go home, he wanted his family, he wanted Zim-

His heart ached.

“Get some sleep Dib,” Zib fixed his linens again. “If any pain flares up, press this button.” He pointed at the blue button on the side of his bed. “It’ll alert me.”   
  
Dib didn’t answer. Zib smiled again, and left.    
  
Dib laid back again, staring at the ceiling out of the corner of his eye, watching the small lights of different machines around the infirmary light up the ceiling like stars in the sky.    
  
His gaze drifted off to the side, and he dared to shut his eyes and let them rest.

Just resting his eyes, that was all.   
  
~~~

“Dib is doing so well Zim,” Zib walked slowly, his hands clasped in front of him as he walked. “The surgery was a major success, it’s much easier to attach a PAK to another person then my own self.” He laughed in the quiet. Nothing.

“I have a really good feeling about this. He and his Zim have a really strong bond. I’m going to try to do some exercises with him tomorrow to see if he can reach out to his Zim.”   
  
Quiet. He clasped his hands tighter.   
  
“Zim, please talk to me, it’s been so long, so so long…”   
  
Nothing.   
  
Zib ran his hands under his eyes, looking up. He slowly unclasped his hands, letting out a shaky sigh and straightening out his back.   
  
“Anyways.”   
  
~~~   
  


_ “Zim, you were once our greatest Invader, but now you’re dumb.” _ _  
_ _  
_ _ “Also stupid.” _ _  
_ _  
_ _ I stared up at my leaders, eyes wide and round. But, I was a good Invader! I was the best! I was the greatest Invader in Irk’s history! They couldn’t, they couldn’t do this to me! _ _  
_ _  
_ _ “As punishment, you will be re-encoded as NOTHING!” _

_ “But you can’t!” I screamed, feeling the cable of the Control Brain grab onto my PAK and yank me up into the air. “I am-” _ _  
_ _  
_ _ “Control Brains! Re-encode!”  _ _  
_ _  
_ _ “RE-ENCODING!” _ _  
_ _  
_ _ ~~~ _ __  
  


Dib snapped awake, shooting upwards and staring around, breathing heavily. He was still here in Zib’s ship, still stuck in the same bed, still attached to the PAK.

He curled back over onto the bed pressing against his pillow. It was an oddly specific dream, Dib wasn’t even sure how he knew all those little details of Zim’s leaders.

What were they talking about? Re-encoding? 

He shook the thought out of his head. He hugged the bed sheet closer, shutting his eyes and falling back asleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> y'all thought this was dead didn't you c:<

**Author's Note:**

> well hiya, this is a new fandom im writing for
> 
> check out the og comic i made on tumblr!  
> https://thefurriestofchows.tumblr.com/post/619923712506986497/so-we-were-talkin-on-the-discord


End file.
